Breakfast is the one meal that I am not good about planning for and it can get really boring. I usually just make scrambled eggs, pancakes, or sometimes (I am embarrassed to say) I will feed my children…..pop tarts! I feel so guilty every time I do it. I want to start making breakfast more exciting around my house and healthier too! I can usually accomplish that when I get out of bed well before my kids, have my coffee, do my devotional, and prepare something before they are awake and it’s GO GO GO! Unfortunately, I don’t always get up as early as I would like, so these Baked Oatmeal Squares are the perfect healthy and easy breakfast that I can make ahead of time of quickly in the morning.

These Baked Oatmeal Squares use simple ingredients that I always have on hand and you can customize the toppings to your taste! This time I topped mine with shredded coconut, walnuts, dried cranberries, and chocolate chips. The chocolate ones being my favorite of course! Fresh blueberries and strawberries are also delicious on these.

I use my Pampered Chef Brownie Pan to make cute little squares that I can easily take for breakfast on the go or for a snack.

This recipe is very simple to make and only dirties one mixing bowl. All you do is mix the wet ingredients together and then add the rolled oats, baking powder, and cinnamon. Put 1/4 cup in each well of the pan or muffin tin and top with whatever you like! My kids love putting their own toppings on. Pop it into a 350 degree oven for 20-25 minutes until golden brown.

As we move into Fall, try substituting the banana in the batter for pureed pumpkin! Or how about using applesauce and topping them with diced apples and cinnamon sugar! The possibilities are endless!

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a Brownie Pan with nonstick baking spray. (You can also use a muffin tin).

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, canola oil, and brown sugar. Add in the bananas, milk, vanilla, salt, and cinnamon. Whisk until combined. Stir in the oats and baking powder.

Add 1/4 cup of the mixture into each of the squares in the pan. Add your favorite toppings.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until set and lightly golden brown on the top. Let them cool for 5 minutes before eating or removing from the pan. Store in the refrigerator or freezer and reheat before eating.

In our house, Sunday morning is usually the only morning my husband is home from work. I like to serve him something delicious and filling for breakfast before we head to church. This Country Sausage Gravy over Buttermilk Biscuits is one of our favorites. I serve this both for breakfast and dinner and it is always SO comforting. It takes me back to my childhood when my Mom would make this gravy regularly. There is just something about a plate filled with homemade biscuits loaded with sausage gravy that warms your soul.

I don’t think I was ever really taught how to make sausage gravy. I think I learned just by watching my Mom make it all those years. It is a very simple dish to make and very forgiving. It always starts with good quality sausage. This time I used Homemade Country Sausage from Boarman’s Meat Market. Boarman’s is an old fashioned meat market in Highland, Maryland and they have some amazing high quality meats. I have shopped there a few times before but hadn’t been recently. It is a meat lovers dream! I really need to go there more often and I don’t think my husband would be mad if I picked up some steaks. This Country Sausage had lots more flavor than the regular sausage I usually get to make this gravy. Win!

This dish is one of those good hearty meals that doesn’t require a lot of ingredients, making it no frills and no fuss. I normally stick with my basic sausage gravy recipe but you can add additional flavors to it depending on what kind of sausage you have. Adding fresh sage or red pepper flakes, can really take it to another level. This Country Sausage Gravy will continue to be a staple in my home for as long as I am the boss in my kitchen (so forever). I am excited for my kids to grow up eating it, just like I did!

Well hello there! I know you haven’t heard from me in a while and I am sorry for that! I have been having technical difficulties (I won’t bore you with the details) . Don’t worry though, behind the scenes I have been cooking like crazy and trying new recipes. I have so many delicious things I can’t wait to share with you. Today it’s time for some flaky and beautiful Buttermilk Biscuits.

I have tried quite a few biscuit recipes and I am always left wanting more. More flakiness. More rise. More layers. More flavor. Just……more. This recipe for Buttermilk Biscuits is perfect and it leaves you wanting nothing more. Okay that’s not entirely true. They will leave you wanting to EAT more….many many more. This recipe is super simple, which means you are always only 20 minutes away from perfect homemade biscuits.

Ready to hear how complicated this recipe is? You have to sift your dry ingredients into a bowl. Cut in 8 tablespoons of butter. Pour in the buttermilk and stir. Then, once a dough has formed, you dump it out onto the counter and fold it over 6 times. Roll the dough into a rectangle half an inch thick and cut out your biscuits. Put them on a baking sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes until puffed and golden brown. Bam. Done. Mission make homemade Buttermilk Biscuits has been accomplished.

The first time I made these, I couldn’t actually believe I made these. They come out of the oven puffed up, showing off all of their wonderful buttery layers. It is a sight to behold. If you are a total food nerd like I am, things like this make you extremely excited and you may have to dance it out right there in the middle of your kitchen :). I love making these for my family on the weekends and topping them with Sausage Gravy. Stay tuned… that recipe will be coming up shortly! Now, go make some of these biscuits so you will be ready.

Preheat oven to 425. Sift flour, baking powder, sugar and salt into a large mixing bowl.

Using a fork or a pastry cutter, cut the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles course crumbs.

Add the buttermilk and stir with a fork until it forms a rough ball.

Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and shape into a rectangle about an inch thick. Fold it over and gently roll out. Repeat 6 times.

Roll the dough out into a rectangle about a half an inch thick. Cut the dough into biscuits using a biscuit cutter or floured glass. Make sure when cutting your biscuits you don't twist the cutter. Go straight down and straight up.

Place the biscuits on a baking sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.

Notes

I like to brush the tops of mine with melted butter when the come out of the oven!

Christmas is just three days away! I am glad I remembered to bring you this recipe before it was to late. I have served these Apple Bundles every Christmas morning that Alex and I have been married. It is a wonderful and delicious Sivert family tradition. Bette is my mother in law, and she used to make these for breakfast on the weekends when her husband was home from work. Alex and his siblings remember enjoying these together as kids and I like to think when I serve these it takes them back to those mornings with their parents. For me, it’s a way to feel more connected to my mother in law. You see, I have never met my mother in law. Sadly, both of Alex’s parents passed away a few years before we met. Pulling out Bette’s old recipe card with her handwriting on it and making these Apple Bundles makes me feel closer to her.

Bette’s Apple Bundles start with, what else, apples. Granny Smith apples are best in this recipe because they hold up while baking and their tart flavor offsets all of the sweetness. Once the apples are cored, peeled, and sliced, you will need to zest and juice one Navel orange. The zest gets mixed up with some cinnamon and sugar and the juice gets set aside. (These will be our toppings for later.) Now comes that wonderful crescent roll dough we all know and love. That stuff is so versatile! Place three apple slices at the wide end of the dough and roll it up. Place the bundles in a 9X13 inch pan.

The orange juice gets poured into the pan but not over the bundles. Next, sprinkle the cinnamon sugar and orange zest mixture all over the top. I like to press it into the dough a bit with my fingers. Then three tablespoons of melted butter gets drizzled over them and you are ready to bake. Bake at 375 for 25-30 minutes until the sauce has thickened and the bundles are golden brown.

Time goes by fast. Whether I am having fun or not, it goes by fast. I cannot believe my husband and I have been married for almost 4 years, that I turn 27 in a couple weeks, and that our kiddos are 19 months old. How did this happen? Where has the time gone? It seems like the weeks fly by so quickly and before I know it the month is gone and then the year. Can we just pause time for a minute? I want to stare at my children before I blink and they are grown. I want to really enjoy this season of life that I am in before it escapes me. It can be so easy to get caught up in the busyness of everyday life. Now, I can’t do anything to slow time down (and if anyone out there can, please let me know) but I can prep make ahead dishes that get me out of the kitchen quickly and back into soaking up every moment with my family. Cheesy Tater Tot Casserole is such an easy dish to prepare and there aren’t even words in the English language to describe how delicious it is.

There are a few reasons that I have fallen head over heels in love with Cheesy Tater Tot Casserole. First, you can make it ahead of time. Assemble it the night before then cover and refrigerate until you are ready to bake. This is a great dish for a Sunday morning when I like to do minimal work before running out the door for church. Second, the kids love it, and I mean LOVE IT (as do I, and my husband, and anyone else who takes a bite). This dish is a crowd pleaser. I have made it for other families and it’s always a big hit. Third, it contains lots and lots of cheese, sausage, and tater tots. All the important food groups (wink wink).

To start you brown one pound of breakfast sausage in a large skillet, breaking it up as it cooks. That is the first layer to your casserole. Don’t mind my worn out looking casserole dish. She is trusty and I love her.

Next comes the cheese, two cups of cheese to be exact, it gets sprinkled on top of the cooked sausage.

In a bowl, whisk together the milk, eggs, pepper, onion powder, and salt. Pour this int0 the dish over the sausage and cheese. It’s coming together now!

Now take those wonderful frozen tater tots (these really take me back to my elementary school days) and arrange them on top. If you are making this ahead, this is where you would cover and refrigerate until you are ready to bake. Now it goes into a 350 degree oven for 35 minutes. Take it out and add an additional 1/2 cup of cheese on top and 4 slices of crumbled bacon. Bake for another 10 minutes or until its all bubbly and golden brown. Let it rest for 10 minutes and you are ready to serve!

Hi, I'm Emily! Thanks for visiting my blog. I am a lover of all things edible and love being adventurous in the kitchen. I hope you will stay awhile and check out some delicious recipes and tasty places you are sure to love.